


in truth, in body

by fragrances (lacquer)



Category: GOT7
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Animal Transformation, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, advice from mark who is not paid for this and maybe should be, idk... cats?, idolverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:00:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26230807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lacquer/pseuds/fragrances
Summary: There comes a point in every boy group member’s life where he will be turned into an animal for a week or so. It is the sort of knowledge that gets passed on behind closed doors at Inkigayo shows, in hushed whispers in dressing rooms.Did you hear U-Know-sunbaenim turned into a turtle for an entire month, right in the middle of a comeback?There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to it. One day everything is normal and one day someone is waking up with fur or claws or scales, blinking in the slow morning light.(Jaebeom turns into a cat and Jinyoung worries.)
Relationships: Im Jaebum | JB/Park Jinyoung
Comments: 9
Kudos: 130





	in truth, in body

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lovefoolthatsme](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovefoolthatsme/gifts).



> Happy birthday Almay!!! This got delayed due to a variety of things, including but not limited to home repair and caratland but it's here now. I hope you had a wonderful day, and that this year will bring you lovely things. 
> 
> I'll be back to edit more thoroughly later (when it's not 1am) but in the mean time, I hope you enjoy <3

There comes a point in every boy group member’s life where he will be turned into an animal for a week or so. It is the sort of knowledge that gets passed on behind closed doors at Inkigayo shows, in hushed whispers in dressing rooms. 

_Did you hear U-Know-sunbaenim turned into a turtle for an entire month, right in the middle of a comeback?_

There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to it. One day everything is normal and one day someone is waking up with fur or claws or scales, blinking in the slow morning light.

Jinyoung has accepted it at this point. 

When, six weeks immediately after debut, Mark turned into a deer and had to be coaxed out from where he tangled himself up in the shower curtains, Jinyoung had just sighed and ordered more vegetables until he changed back.

Jaebeom had laughed at the shower incident, but hours later, Jinyoung had found him crouching down on his toes, gently explaining a beat pattern he was working on until Mark calmed down. 

Even Jinyoung has spent a week or so as a fluffy tan dog, tripping over his paws and running after any ball-shaped object thrown in his direction. The memory of the week is hazy, as if seen through fogged glass, but he can still remember cuddling up to Mark’s side until he gave out the good ear scratches.

It’s a long held secret, some sort of magic hanging about the industry like an unfortunate cloud of smoke. Irritating, but nothing that can’t be dealt with. 

None of that however, explains why it is so _disorienting_ to one day wake up and find Jaebeom missing. In his place is a sleek black cat, eyes like yellow torches. 

Jinyoung spends a frantic minute searching the dorm with the other members before Mark finds him, sprawling in the sun and they all realize what happened. He’s glad they didn’t somehow let Cat-Jaebeom outside somehow.

He can only imagine the headlines if they had lost him and he turned back human outside. _Boy Group GOT7’s Leader Found Naked in Seoul, Eating Cat Food!_ He would rather avoid that nightmare, thank you.

Once found, Jaebeom doesn’t do much to acknowledge their attention. The flick of a black ear, the slightest twitch of his tail. 

And still, Jinyoung is stuck staring at him. Because there had been a moment suspended between the uncertainty of finding him and the realization of what happened, where Jinyoung had thought to himself, _What will I do if he’s no longer here?_

It pulled the air from his lungs, the realization that he didn’t have an answer. He still doesn’t. 

Jackson kneels down, holding out a hand. “Here, kitty kitty.” He makes a noise that sounds suspiciously like _pspsps._

Jaebeom peels open one eye and rolls over, firmly ignoring him. The early morning sunlight paints glowing stripes over his side and he stretches, claws flexing. Jackson pouts.

Jinyoung, caught halfways between panic and long held resignation about this issue, pulls out his phone. “I’m going to call the manager. Jackson, don’t get scratched.”

“Hyung wouldn’t do that,” Jackson says, reaching a hand out to smooth along Jaebeom’s side. “He loves me.”

Bambam squats in the corner and laughs when Jaebeom gets up with a ruffle of indignant fur, scooting away from Jackson’s hand. He’s a streak of midnight between their legs, running right up until he can hide being Youngjae, who sneezes. “Sorry,” he says apologetically. “Allergies.” It doesn’t stop him from picking Jaebeom up though, and shooting a smug look at Jackson when the cat starts purring.

Jinyoung, phone ringing in his ear, sighs. He can already tell it’s going to be a long week. 

* * *

Of everything, explaining what had happened to their manager is the easy part. Jinyoung sends him a photo of Jaebeom’s boneless torso draped over Youngjae’s (increasingly red-eyed) form, and their manager tells Jinyoung—tensely—not to worry about it.

They have two weeks before comeback promotions start. Jinyoung is worrying about it.

“Youngjae,” Jinyoung says. “Put Jaebeom down, you look like you’re going to pass out.”

Youngjae gives him a look that says _but look at how fluffy he is._ The way his nose is running undercuts the feeling just a bit.

Jinyoung tries to convey with his eyebrows how much he doesn’t want Youngjae to go to the hospital because he refused to put down Jaebeom—no matter how cute of a cat he makes.

When Youngjae doesn’t look like he’s about to budge, Jinyoung sighs. “At least go get some allergy meds from the store. At this rate you’re going to pass out before you have to go to the studio.”

At this, Youngjae finally relents, setting Jaebeom down on the couch. Jaebeom stares up at him, ears flicking. He meows, pitifully. Youngjae wavers.

 _“Go,”_ Jinyoung repeats. He walks over and offers the back of his hand to Jaebeom, effectively distracting him from Youngjae.

Jaebeom gives him the strangest look, sitting back and looking at Jinyoung’s hand curiously. And then he sneezes, and walks away. 

Jinyoung stares at him walking away and blinks. When he looks at Youngjae, the other man shakes his head. “Sorry, hyung.”

“Sorry for what?” Jinyoung asks, but Youngjae is already walking towards the front door. 

He looks around the living room. Everyone else has walked out while he wasn’t looking. 

“Sorry for what?” he repeats. No one answers, and Jinyoung sighs. They have an hour before group practice. He might as well get some breakfast.

* * *

It should be easier to get used to. That’s what Jinyoung thinks, at least. He's not unused to Jaebeom being gone for vacations, or on trips of his own. There are entire days where they barely see each other at all between interviews and studio time, but this absence feels different. More pronounced, for some reason.

Jinyoung wakes up in the morning and looks around for Jaebeom’s lazy eyes. He isn't there. Jinyoung orders two coffees on instinct, only to give one to Bambam. Jinyoung turns with a joke on his tongue, and Jaebeom isn't there to hear it. 

Yugyeom gives him a sympathetic look when he sees, and Jinyoung shakes his head. Thankfully Jaebeom hadn't disappeared in the middle of their comeback, but having a cat where their leader should be while they’re perfecting choreo is less than ideal. 

And to top it all off, cat Jaebeom doesn't even like him.

Jinyoung can't understand it. He's always gotten on better with dogs, but it's not like cats hate him. Except for Jaebeom, apparently. Everywhere Jinyoung goes, Jaebeom avoids him. They haven’t been in the same room for more than a minute since the transformation.

“Is it something I’m wearing?” Jinyoung asks Mark. In the doorway, Cat-Jaebeom slips around the corner. He had left Mark’s lap the minute Jinyoung had walked in.

The other man blinks at him slowly. _Doe eyes,_ Jinyoung thinks _._

“I don’t think so.”

“Then what is it?” Jinyoung asks, picking up one of the cat toys they bought recently off the floor.

“I think it’s just you,” Mark tells him. “Or, uh—”

“Thanks,” Jinyoung says dryly. He shakes the cat toy, a small grey mouse. It jingles. “That’s reassuring to hear.”

Mark shakes his head. “That’s not what I meant.” He waves a hand encompassing the whole of their situation. “Do you remember what it was like?”

Jinyoung thinks for a second. “Not really? It was like I blinked and the week was gone.” Truth be told, he remembers more than that, but he’s not exactly eager to share. It comes to him in dreams sometimes, and leaves him in a bad mood all morning. The feeling of being trapped in a body not his own was terrifying. 

“I do,” Mark says. He taps a finger on the couch. “It was like every worry I had was magnified by a thousand. I was me, just more… aware of what mattered to me.”

“And what, that means Jaebeom doesn’t want to be in the same room as me?”

“I think it means he’s thinking it over.” Mark pulls out his phone and starts typing. “Just give him some time.”

Jinyoung’s heart pulls. “Yeah, ok.”

When he checks his messages later, he finds that Mark had sent him articles on cat care.

* * *

_One. Stay calm, your cat is probably more stressed than you are._

Two days later, Jinyoung looks up from an article on how to socialize your new cat, to see their manager enter the practice room. The man waves him over as soon as he notices Jinyoung’s attention and Jinyoung gets up to walk to him. 

“Jinyoung,” he says. Jinyoung hates the tone of voice. It means _Jinyoung, there are problems. Jinyoung, you’re going to have to fix them. Jinyoung, we know you’ll stay an extra two hours to get this sorted out._

Sure enough, the next words out of their manager's mouth are, “There’s a problem.”

“What’s wrong?” Jinyoung asks. 

“Jaebeom,” their manager answers. “It’s his schedule. We managed to move around some photoshoots, luckily the magazines were very understanding, but we need someone to go do interviews to promote your comeback.”

“Right,” Jinyoung says, already trying to think through their schedules. “I think Jackson might be free tomorrow? Or Bambam if it’s really early.”

“We’re sending you,” their manager says. 

Jinyoung pauses. “What?” He has a meeting in the morning, a short recording right after, rehearsal, and then a small magazine shoot. There’s no time in there for whatever they need him to cover.

“I know you’re busy, but we thought you’d be the best fit,” the look their manager sends him is apologetic, eyes crinkling beneath the bucket hat he’s wearing. “It’s an interview after your rehearsal time, we’ve scheduled the shoot for later. We’ll try to make sure it doesn’t go too long.”

“Ok,” Jinyoung says, and takes a deep breath. Mentally, he starts rearranging his schedule. That’s what he does. Park Jinyoung, the man who steps up and gets things done. “Can you send me the prep for it today?”

Their manager nods. “Jaebeom might have more notes too, we sent him the packet last week.”

“Right. I’ll look it over,” he says. 

* * *

_Two. Don't try to force the cat. Your cat should take the lead when it comes to interactions._

Six hours later finds him looking through Jaebeom’s room, trying to find the paper with the notes on it. 

“Where’d you leave it?” he asks the room at large. It doesn’t answer him, a silent desk and an unmade bed. Jinyoung spends a moment staring at the bed. Normally it’s at least pulled into a semblance of order before Jaebeom leaves for the day, but the morning after his transformation, no one had thought to do it. 

He walks over to the bed and shakes out the sheets and blanket, tucking them into the bed’s corners. It doesn’t make him feel better. Instead, all he can think is that Jaebeom wouldn’t have put his bed together like that. He would have tucked in the sides messily and then walked out of the room, to get breakfast and tease one of their members. 

He hasn’t done that in nearly a week now. 

Jinyoung sits down on the bed and closes his eyes. The room still smells like Jaebeom, which makes him pause for a second. The thought sits strangely. He doesn’t know when he had become able to identify Jaebeom not just by sight, but by other senses too. The way his voice sounds on the verge of laughing. The smell of him, his favorite body wash and cheap deodorant. All the little things that made Jaebeom _Jaebeom._

He opens his eyes after a second. He doesn’t have the time to be doing… whatever this is. The interview is in less than 24 hours, and he _still doesn’t have Jaebeom’s notes_.

When he looks up however, sitting in front of him is… Jaebeom. 

Sometime while Jinyoung wasn’t paying attention, he had walked through the open door to curl himself up near Jinyoung’s feet.

“Jaebeom?” Jinyoung asks.

Jaebeom just blinks at him and lies down, resting his head on his paws. 

“Do you know where your notes on tomorrow’s interview are?” Jinyoung tries.

No answer. Jaebeom squints at him and flicks an ear. Jinyoung flops back on the bed. “I don’t know what I expected.” With a sigh, he heaves himself up and goes back to searching through Jaebeom’s small bookshelf. 

“You could have made this more organized, you know,” Jinyoung says over his shoulder. It’s not like Jinyoung himself has any leg to stand on—his own interview scripts are in a pile somewhere next to his bed, but it feels better to complain about something. “You could have at least given me somewhere to start looking.

The bookshelf reveals nothing, and so Jinyoung turns to the desk, sorting through some haphazard notes on songs Jaebeom was working on, a few ticket stubs and loose leaves of paper, and—

“Is this a list of birthday ideas?” Jinyoung says, unexpectedly delighted. In Jaebeom’s curled handwriting the list is clear, titled on the top as _Jinyoungie’s Birthday??_

Behind him, there’s the scrabbling of paws on wood before a solid weight knocks into Jinyoung’s arm, sending the list fluttering to the ground. Very abruptly, Jinyoung has twelve pounds of very annoyed cat in his arms, clinging on for dear life. 

“Woah there,” Jinyoung says, and just as abruptly sits down, so that Jaebeom can rest in his lap instead of suspended midair. “I got the message, I’ll leave it alone.”

Jaebeom makes a noise that sounds like _mrrp,_ and closes his eyes. Jinyoung considers that the closest he’ll be getting to forgiveness and moves to get up. As he does so, Jaebeom digs claws into Jinyoung’s thighs, and Jinyoung sits back down with an _oof_.

“Are you serious? I have work to be doing. I want to go to bed sometime before 2 am.”

Jaebeom doesn’t move though, just flicks his tail and turns his head into Jinyoung’s stomach. 

“You didn’t want to be in the same room as me for days, and now this?” Jinyoung says, a little reproving. He stays put though. Some part of him doesn’t want to disrupt this little bit of attention Jaebeom is giving him, even if he has no reason why. 

Carefully, afraid that Jaebeom will pull out his claws again, Jinyoung scratches around Jaebeom’s ears. He begins to purr. 

Twenty minutes later, Youngjae pokes his head into the room. “Hyung have you… oh.”

“Shhh,” Jinyoung says, mouthing the words more than speaking them. “I think he’s asleep.”

Jaebeom is a puddle of black fur in Jinyoung’s lap, eyes pressed in friendly slits. 

“Have you seen Bambam?” Youngjae whisper-yells. “We were going to get snacks an hour ago.”

“Have you tried Yugyeom’s room?” Jinyoung asks, pointing in that direction. 

Youngjae shakes his head. “No, why would I… oh.”

Jinyoung makes an understanding face at him. “I’d try calling first.”

“Thanks,” Youngjae says. He starts to move out of the doorway before pausing. “Are you still looking for those notes?”

Jinyoung nods. 

“I’d try the bags over there, Jaebeom-hyung was looking the notes over when we last ate lunch.”

“Thanks,” Jinyoung mouths back. Youngjae waves and steps out of the room. 

In his lap, Jaebeom still hasn’t moved. Jinyoung runs a hand over his back and sighs. “Are you going to let me up sometime soon?”

Jaebeom gives no answer.

(An hour later when Jaebeom finally lets him go, Jinyoung finally gets up, and retrieves the notes. They’re right where Youngjae had said they’d be, and Jinyoung smiles. Strangely, even though his to do list hasn’t changed, he feels lighter.)

* * *

The next day is grueling, as promised. Jinyoung opens his eyes at too-early-o’clock and bullheadedly makes his way through the next sixteen hours, fighting against every instinct in his body to go back to the dorm and back to sleep.

Instead, he meets with management about their comeback, rehearses until every movement in the chorus of their title track comes out knife-sharp, and attends the interview Jaebeom is too cat-shaped to complete himself.

Jinyoung likes to think he did well enough at everything required of him, but between it all, he barely has time to grab lunch, let alone dinner.

When he finally gets back to the dorm that night, Jinyoung collapses face first into his bed, not even bothering to wash his face. He’s exhausted, but that should be the end of it. He’ll get dinner in the morning. Breakfast. Whatever.

And with that thought, Jinyoung goes to sleep.

* * *

_Three. Let your cat have its own space. Your cat needs to feel like it has a place where it can be safe from other animals and even you._

That is not the end of it. 

Jinyoung slowly comes to the realization that in Jaebeom’s absence, somehow _he’s_ been deemed their interim leader. Meetings Jaebeom would have attended, decisions Jaebeom would have made, are suddenly entirely and solely Jinyoung’s responsibility.

It’s not that Jinyoung wasn’t aware of how much work Jaebeom did. They had shouldered this responsibility together during previous comebacks, Jinyoung stepping in without a second thought to help Jaebeom out. It’s that _now_ Jinyoung is doing it all alone.

“You need to take a break,” Mark tells him one evening, eyebrows furrowed. 

Jinyoung just raises an eyebrow at him, trying to convey the number of extra hours he’s seen Mark spend in practice rooms or the studio. Glass houses, really.

Mark shakes his head. “I’m serious. I think the others have noticed it too, they just have a lot on their plate right now.”

“And you don’t?” Jinyoung asks. 

Mark frowns. “I just worry. Is there something going on?”

Fondness blooms in Jinyoung’s chest, even as he can feel his mouth twist. “Yeah, actually.” His fingers tap on the table he’s sitting at. “I talked with JYP today, or at least talked to his representative. They’ve drafted up a statement about Jaebeom taking a leave of absence, if he doesn’t turn back soon.”

“The _Weekly Idol_ shoot?” Mark asks, but it’s not really a question.

“Pretty much,” Jinyoung says. “If he isn’t there to film this Friday, then they’re declaring him officially on leave for this comeback.”

Mark’s frown grows deeper. “I’ll talk to the managers. He’s been like that for about a week, he’s due to change back soon.”

“Thanks,” Jinyoung says, and sighs. There’s no guarantee Mark will be able to change their minds, but it’s one less thing to worry about. He takes a deep breath. “I’m going to bed.”

“Yeah me too,” Mark says, and yawns. “One more thing though.”

“What is it?” Jinyoung asks. 

“Talk to Jaebeom, he’s been worried,” Mark says. The little furrow is back again in his brow. “He stayed up until you got back from the studio tonight, wouldn’t stop meowing until Jackson shut him in his room.”

Jinyoung’s heart does a funny little twist. “Did you let him out?”

“We opened the door, but as far as anyone’s been able to tell, he’s still in there,” Mark says. “Anyway, talk to you tomorrow.”

“Sleep well,” Jinyoung says absently. He gets ready for bed slowly, puts on sleeping clothes and a face mask, and then goes to knock on Jaebeom’s open door.

He doesn’t get an answer, so he pushes the door further open and peers inside. The lights are off, faint streetlight coming in from the window. “Jaebeom?”

No response. Jinyoung walks into the room and squats down in the middle of it. From this angle he can see the plume of Jaebeom’s tail, waving from beneath the bed. “I can see you, you know.”

Still nothing. Jinyoung sighs and sits down all the way. He tips his head up and addresses the ceiling. “It’ll be ok, you know. This isn’t your fault. We miss you, but it’ll…” Abruptly, he feels very tired. He’s been tired for weeks now. 

“It’ll be ok. I just miss you.” Jinyoung blinks hard and pats his sheet mask more firmly into place. He’s had a lot of time to think the situation over, these past few days. Think about why it feels like someone has scooped out his internal organs, or tilted gravity by six degrees. The conclusion is obvious, in retrospect. That doesn’t mean it was easy to come by.

Slowly, Jinyoung keeps talking. “When we first met, I didn’t think you were very reliable. It was confusing and I thought you weren’t taking things seriously. Now— I rely on you. I didn’t realize, but you’re...” he trails off, but the meaning is there. Jinyoung understands now, why some people write poetry. There are words fluttering around his chest that could only make sense in verse. 

Picture the sun: blinding, warm. Now picture Jaebeom’s smile. Now forget the metaphor entirely and think about years and months and hours spent together until Jinyoung can map Jaebeom’s face with his eyes closed, looks to him first when he enters a room, knows his coffee order without thinking. There’s a word for that.

Jaebeom still doesn’t move from beneath the bed and Jinyoung gets up slowly. His joints ache. “I’m glad you’re ok. Goodnight, Jaebeom.”

He tosses the sheet mask in the trash as he returns to his room. He sleeps fitfully, that night.

* * *

_Too close too tighttooclose._

_Jinyoung trips out of his bed and trips over the tangle of sheets, falling to the ground. The world is too bright and smells awful. Everything looks strangely flat._

_He runs from it. Runs and runs and runs._

* * *

Jinyoung wakes with a start.

He’s shivering, and half over his face is several pounds of black fur in the form of a cat, making it hard to breathe. “Oh my god, get off,” he says, and shoves Jaebeom onto his chest instead. 

As if to be contrary, Jaebeom starts purring.

Slowly, Jinyoung’s heart rate returns to normal. “What are you doing?” he asks Jaebeom. He doesn’t get any answer, as per usual.

He’s not sure how much of Jaebeom is aware of what’s going on, but Jinyoung addresses his fluffy stomach anyway. “Can you get off me? I need to get breakfast.”

Jaebeom doesn’t move, and Jinyoung pushes him off anyway, ignoring the indignant _mrrp_ Jaebeom makes. “I’ll leave out some food for you, hyung.” Jinyoung pauses a second. “Come back to us soon, ok?”

And with that, he leaves to get started with the day.

* * *

Practice runs long that evening and Jinyoung comes back with his muscles feeling like jello. They’re all laughing as they walk in the door, even if their comeback looms on the horizon like a tidal wave.

“First shower!” Jackson yells, and takes off down the hall. 

“Hey!” Bambam yells back, and runs after him.

Jinyoung shakes his head at them. “I don’t know how they still have energy for that,” he tells Yugyeom, who just laughs at him. No sympathy to be had from his juniors.

“You sound old, hyung.”

“I’m not old,” Jinyoung tells him. “And just for that, I’m taking the third shower.”

“Hey!” Yugyeom says, but Jinyoung is already speeding off down the hall to grab a change of clothes. 

When he steps into his room, there, curled into his bed, is Jaebeom. Still a cat. Jinyoung’s heart drops, but he still walks over to scritch him around the ears. “I’m back, hyung.”

That night, just before Jinyoung falls asleep, a streak of black fur jumps up to his bed and curls itself half on Jinyoung’s pillow. Jinyoung makes a face at him. “You do know there’s not room on this pillow for the both of us?”

When Jaebeom makes no move to get off, Jinyoung pushes him off a little, just until he has room to sleep comfortably. With that, he falls asleep.

* * *

Jinyoung wakes up slow the next day. There’s a weight draped over half his chest, warm and breathing and alive. When he stretches his muscles pull pleasantly and he rubs at his eyes with one hand. 

Then he registers who, exactly, is in bed with him. Jaebeom has his head pillowed on Jinyoung’s shoulder, his black hair sticking up in three distinct directions. 

“Jaebeom!” Jinyoung rolls them over, pinning Jaebeom flat on his back. The other man blinks.

“What… Jinyoungie?”

The sound of his voice is a relief. Emotion is like a balloon untethered, rising giddy into the sky. “You’re back, I missed you.”

He holds Jaebeom there. Even as the shock of him softens, Jinyoung doesn’t look away. Part of him is convinced that if he did Jaebeom would turn back into a cat, or worse, vanish entirely.

“I’m back,” Jaebeom says, and blinks slowly. “I’m back.” He repeats the words a second time with a tone of dawning wonder. “I missed you too.” He reaches out to place a hand on Jinyoung’s jaw, and it’s wonderfully warm.

Jinyoung leans down and tucks his face into Jaebeom’s neck, curling up on top of him. Jaebeom smells like he should, with an added layer of, “You smell like cat food.”

“Sorry, should I have taken a shower?” Jaebeom asks, amused. 

“Yes,” Jinyoung says, just to be contrary.

“Ok.” Jaebeom moves to get up and Jinyoung pushes him back down again, looking at his face. 

“That was a—” he cuts himself off when he sees Jaebeom’s grin. “Joke.”

Jaebeom is full on laughing now. “It’s good to be back.”

Jinyoung relaxes just a little more. There are words on his tongue, entire volumes of poetry and emotion, trying to rearrange themselves into something polished, something worthy of being said out loud.

Jaebeom pauses, looking at whatever expression he’s making and smooshes Jinyoung’s face with both of his hands. “I rely on you too, you know?” His voice is terribly sincere, emotion mapped out in his early-morning rasp. 

“How much of that do you remember?” Jinyoung asks, slowly. The words come out slightly smothered thanks to the way his cheeks are squished.. 

“Enough,” Jaebeom returns. His eyes crease at the corners and he lets go of Jinyoung’s face, only to brush his hair behind his ear. Touch, lingering. 

Perhaps it is that gesture, his absent familiarity, that makes Jinyoung move. Perhaps it is any number of things, beating in his throat like doves. The result is the same. He leans down and kisses him, slow and careful. A second, and Jaebeom kisses him back, one hand tangling in his hair. 

When he pulls back, Jinyoung is entirely warm. The way Jaebeom is looking at him is bright and tender and the words on his tongue don’t feel so hard to say after all.

  
  


Extra:

The revelation that Jaebeom is back to normal goes over at breakfast. Half of their group shuffles around the kitchen, grabbing a bite to eat before they’re due at _Weekly Idol_. 

“I’m glad you’re back, hyung. Jinyoung-hyung was getting mopey,” Jackson says, walking straight to the refrigerator. He knocks his shoulder into Jaebeom as he goes, as if checking he’s really there.

“We couldn’t have that,” Jaebeom grins, and next to him, Bambam makes a face. 

“Like you were better,” Jinyoung tells him, reaching around Bambam to grab a container of rice. 

Mark walks in, blinking in the early morning sun, lighting up when he sees Jaebeom. “You’re back!”

Jaebeom grins. “I’m back.”

They hug briefly, before Mark turns to Jinyoung. “So, did those articles on cat care help any?”

Jaebeom looks at them both. “What?” His mouth is curled at the edges, like he can see what Jinyoung’s Naver history looks like right now.

Jinyoung covers his face with one of his hands. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

**Author's Note:**

> find me on twitter/cc @lavenderim!! i'd love to hear your thoughts <3


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